1. Technical Field
This application generally relates to data storage, and more particularly to techniques used in connection with data storage system management.
2. Description of Related Art
Computer systems may include different resources used by one or more host processors. Resources and host processors in a computer system may be interconnected by one or more communication connections. These resources may include, for example, data storage devices such as those included in the data storage systems manufactured by EMC Corporation. These data storage systems may be coupled to one or more host processors and provide storage services to each host processor. Multiple data storage systems from one or more different vendors may be connected and may provide common data storage for one or more host processors in a computer system.
A host processor may perform a variety of data processing tasks and operations using the data storage system. For example, a host processor may perform basic system I/O operations in connection with data requests, such as data read and write operations.
Host processor systems may store and retrieve data using a storage device containing a plurality of host interface units, disk drives, and disk interface units. Such storage devices are provided, for example, by EMC Corporation of Hopkinton, Mass. and disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,206,939 to Yanai et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,778,394 to Galtzur et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,845,147 to Vishlitzky et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 5,857,208 to Ofek. The host systems access the storage device through a plurality of channels provided therewith. Host systems provide data and access control information through the channels to the storage device and storage device provides data to the host systems also through the channels. The host systems do not address the disk drives of the storage device directly, but rather, access what appears to the host systems as a plurality of logical disk units, logical devices, or logical volumes (LVs). The logical disk units may or may not correspond to the actual disk drives. Allowing multiple host systems to access the single storage device unit allows the host systems to share data stored therein.
Different tasks may be performed in connection with a data storage system. For example, a customer may perform data storage management and configuration tasks. Such tasks may include, for example, configuring and provisioning storage for use with one or more applications. Data storage requirements for an application may be expressed in terms of one or more objectives, such as performance goals to be achieved for the application. A data storage system administrator may perform data storage system management tasks in accordance with the foregoing objectives, for example, by specifying the logical and/or physical devices used for the storage allocation and provisioning, specifying whether the data should be replicated, the particular RAID (Redundant Array of Independent or Inexpensive Disks) level, and the like. The data storage administrator typically decides how to implement and achieve the foregoing objectives for an application in terms of the physical resources, various RAID configurations, and the like, that may be available in a data storage system for use by the application and with the application data. Using existing tools, in connection with performing data storage management tasks, it may be difficult for a data storage administrator to appropriately configure resources of the data storage system for use by the application in order to achieve the desired objectives for the application.
Thus, it may be desirable to utilize a flexible technique which assists in connection with performing data storage management tasks in accordance with one or more objectives for an application.